Setting of the Sun
by Kimura Yumi
Summary: Having promised Sasuke to watch the sunset with him, Saizo goes along while harbouring strange feelings he had never felt before towards him. SaiSasu oneshot, contains BL


**A/N: SAISASUUUUUUUUUU**

**I SWEAR I AM IN DEEP LOVE WITH THIS OTP. FOREVER. AND EVERRRRRR. LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE BEST AMGEEHHHHHH**

***fangirl scream***

**Anyways! :3 this fanfic was a request by Nina on instagram, which was quite some time ago... Gomennasai! QAQAQ So I've got it here, hope you enjoy XD**

**There IS supposed to be an M-rated version (on Nina's request) of this one, but meh I haven't typed it out. Will update this fic with a notice when I'm done with it...**

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Edit: M-rated extract is on my livejournal

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**Setting of the Sun**

**(c) Kimura Yumi**

**Summary:**

**Having promised Sasuke to watch the sunset with him, Saizo goes along while harbouring strange feelings he had never felt before towards him. SaiSasu, contains BL**

**WARNING: If you can't stand even the slightest of BL... well... There's the backbutton...**

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"Saizo!" Sasuke Sarutobi yelled out in excitement as he leapt his way up the hell, leaving Saizo Kirigakure, who was slowly taking his time to walk, behind. "Hurry up! You're so slow, stupid Saizo!" The said ninja shook his head as he watched the monkey ninja sprinting along the inclining slope of grass and flowers.

"You idiot," the chestnut-haired ninja shouted out in annoyance. "I won't be there to help your sorry ass if you ever trip on a rock, fall, then hurt your knee. And I'll laugh at you," he added in a soft mocking voice. He then stared at Sasuke in disbelief as the latter ignored his words and did not even stop to slow down. In fact, out of excitement, the blonde ninja actually became _faster_.

Just yesterday, the ninjas were given permission to take a break from their daily duties. Being the best of 'friends' (and enemies), Sasuke had pleaded with Saizo to watch the sunset and the stars on the hill near the village.

"_Pretty pleeeaaaassseeee?" _the monkey ninja had begged him with sparkling topaz eyes. _"I promise I'll do your bidding for a month!"_

He could never say no to that adorable face of Sasuke.

"_Plus, I have something really important to tell you too," _Sasuke had added with somewhat of a wistful look before he left for his patrolling duty. Till now it had been silently bugging Saizo.

_What was so important that you had to tell me personally, Sasuke? _Saizo always had this thought wandering around in his mind. Strangely enough, it had bothered him to the extent of actually _piquing _his curiosity. He felt his face turning hot as the very image of Sasuke popped up in his mind.

_No! _He profusely shook his head. _That's silly! Why am I even thinking of that idiot? It's not like I like him or anythin – _

He suddenly stopped in his tracks as he absorbed what he had just thought. Did he like him as a normal friend, or was it actually something more than that?

Even he himself could not be so sure.

After all, they were both guys. It would be extremely awkward, and their friendship might probably come to an end.

"Besides, who on earth would fall in love with that bumbling idiot monkey!?" he thought, furiously rejecting his thoughts about his partner-in-action. He was then abruptly interrupted by a loud thud, an "oof!", and then a loud familiar squeal of pain which always brought him annoyance without fail. Immediately responding, Saizo swiftly turned around and glanced at where the monkey ninja was standing.

_That idiot!_

He swiftly darted across the lush green grass in panic, and up the hill. The grass made a soft crunching noise under his foot as he dashed up the slope. He then saw Sasuke lying on the grass, his shuriken-embossed pants showing evident stains of blood. He shook his head in sheer resignation.

"You always never listen to me, you stupid, hopeless monkey," he muttered angrily as he held out his hand. "Are you okay?"

"… I thought you said you'd laugh at me," the blonde ninja stated in confusion as the pain in his knee jolted, resulting in a sharp wince of pain escaping from his throat. A hiss of agony accompanied it as Sasuke clawed at the grass tightly, trying to burn the pain away through sheer force.

"… You know I don't mean it, right?" Saizo sighed. "Get up already, you idiot." For some reason, as he said this with much irritation and annoyance, he felt relief washing over him at the same time.

_How strange…_

The Koga ninja then turned his head away, trying his best to avoid the other ninja's sparkling green gaze, as if he was trying to hide something. Saizo squinted his eyes, and could just barely make out the injured male's ear turning cherry red. Somehow, it actually made him more curious about Sasuke. He wanted to know more about him, but could not do so because of the spark of rivalry between them.

… _What is Sasuke thinking now…?_

In an attempt to cover up his spacing-out, the Iga ninja then impatiently knelt down, planted his hands on both Sasuke's back and thighs, and then lifted him up bridal-style.

"H – hey!" the blonde ninja protested. "Let me down, Saizo! Let me dowwwwnnnn!" Without even realising it, his face had gone all red in embarrassment, making the emerald-eyed male reply with a sadistic smirk.

"Oh? I'm just helping you, my _best friend_," he said. "Plus, your face is really red. We should really find a river soon so I can throw you inside and purge the monkey odour from you," he added with a scowl.

"It – it's nothing, you idiot!" Sasuke shot back as he became more flustered. "It's just my scarf! I'm just feeling hot, th – that's all!"

"Then you should take it off, stupid~"

"Then shouldn't you take yours off too!?"

"No way!" Saizo glared at the blonde ninja. "I totally have more exposed areas of my body, unlike you, you fully-clothed idiot!"

"That just sounds totally wrong, Saizo!"

"Then just shut up and let me help you up, you ass!"

"… Fine!" the blonde ninja spluttered as his cheeks turned cherry pink in embarrassment and looked away again. Saizo felt an inner warmth of triumph smiling inside of him as Sasuke began to relax his muscles, which, somehow, was able to put his mind at ease. At the very least, his injuries would not worsen with a successfully prevented aggravated state of him, for a while…

All of a sudden, the monkey ninja started to squirm about in the unscathed ninja's muscular arms, which almost threw the latter off his balance. "Keep still, you idiot!" the Iga ninja growled.

However, his rival seemed to take no notice of his annoyance as he exclaimed, "Saizo, hurry up!" He thrust his arm forward, pointing towards the sky. "The sky is turning orange!" The said ninja then shot a glance upwards, and sure enough, he was greeted by a sea of sparkling amber.

Holy shurikens.

"Go faster, Saizooooo! We can't miss this sunset!" Sasuke whined in a protest as he looked up at the chestnut-haired male's jade eyes with a sense of urgency in his amber ones.

"Are you an idiot!?" Saizo shot back in frustration with a frown of exasperation. "It'll just make your knee even worse, idiot!" He _did_ try to quicken his steps, but he was actually deathly afraid that his injured comrade would slip out of his arms, and fall away from his grasp.

"It's okay! This is nothing!" the Koga ninja yelled back. His topaz eyes seemed to glimmer with a sense of determination. "I refuse to break our promise just because of my injury, stupid Saizo!"

The black-clothed ninja blinked in astonishment at the word 'promise', as his steps slowed down to the speed of a snail.

_Promise…_

_How long has it been since he had come into contact with the utmost important meaning of it…?_

"…Saizo…?" Sasuke asked, a hint of genuine worry laced in his tone. "Are… are you okay…"

"… Yeah, you're right…" Saizo mumbled. He then directed his glance towards the front. "Hang on tight, I'll get you there in no time," he murmured before he leapt into the air, and swiftly darted through trees skillfully, while at the same time, hanging onto Sasuke for dear life.

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_On the (fabulous) hill…_

"OUUCCCHHHHH!" Sasuke yelped out from sheer pain as Saizo attempted to examine the shorter male's injury. He frowned with a pout. "Dammit, Saizo, couldn't you be a little bit more gentler!?"

'It's your fault for not listening to me, idiot monkey!" the devil-masked ninja lashed back with a snarl. "So just quit your damn stupid monkey whining already!" He then rolled the blonde ninja's pants up, revealing a deformed-looking kneecap, blood, and _more_ blood.

"How the hell did you even manage to injure your knee to this extent, just from tumbling down the hill!?" He glared at the Koga ninja, who had a sheepish apologetic grin gracing his lips. "… Never mind…" Saizo then frowned at the deformed body part while his hands gingerly glided across Sasuke's skin. "… Damn, it's broken," he muttered under his breath, along with some cursing. Swiftly, he discarded the latter's tennis shoes to one isolated corner. Then, with a pull, a twist, a yank, and more of Sasuke's blood-curdling screams, his knee was finally fixed back to its original position.

"Now, about the blood…" Saizo's fingers then closed around his scarf. With a swift flourish, the fabric came off easily, its extended ends fluttering in the air. He then took both ends of it and began to wrap the scarf around Sasuke's knee as a bandage for the overflowing blood.

"… Saizo… your scarf…" the monkey ninja murmured as a look of guild flashed across his face.

"It's okay," the chocolate-haired ninja replied without looking up. "It's washable." He found his cheeks burning ever so slightly as his fingertips accidentally brushed against the blonde's pallid skin.

"I… Thank you, Saizo."

At the work of thanks, Saizo looked up and saw a gentle, beautiful smile lingering on Sasuke's thin lips, and silently wished that time would freeze at this very moment. His heart skipped a beat as he turned away from the topaz-eyed ninja, hiding his scarlet cheeks from sight. Unfortunately, the monkey ninja, with his adept senses, had very sensitive eyesight and instantly spotted the blushing ninja's face. Being the usual dimwit, he asked without thinking, "Hey, Saizo, are you… blushing…?"

"N – no way!" the Iga ninja spluttered. "Why would I!? I'm just feeling hot, that's all!"

"… Right…" Sasuke looked at the other ninja, his eyes filled with doubt. There was simply _no way_ Saizo Kirigakure, being the ever thick-skinned person he was, would use such a lame excuse. _Unless…_

A stream of sunlight beaming before his eyes caught his attention. He gripped the devil-masked ninja's hand tightly as he exclaimed, "Look, Saizo, it's the sunset!" He tugged at the said ninja's glove hem persistently, trying as hard as he could to grab his attention.

"I'm watching, I'm watching," Saizo muttered in slight annoyance. However, he could feel himself smiling inwardly for some reason. _Was it because their promise had been fulfilled? _

_Or was it…_

… No way… Is he…

_Is he falling in love with Sasuke…?_

He looked down at the shorter ninja, who was greatly immersed in the astounding beauty of the sunset. _Impossible_, he told himself. There was no way he would fall for that idiot!

Then again, love never fails to overcome boundaries.

"… Saizo?" The now quiet and serious voice of Sasuke abruptly shattered the demon ninja's thoughts, waking him up from his reverie.

In fact, it was actually _scaring_ him, hearing such seriousness from the idiot himself.

"… I'm listening," Saizo muttered. Unconsciously, he clenched the amber-eyed ninja's hand tightly as he felt his heart race, beating itself against his chest with such a great force that he actually felt pain from it.

_What is he going to say…?_

"… Please don't feel disgusted about what I'm going to say…" He hesitated for a moment, before taking a deep breath, and continuing, "I… I've been meaning to tell you this all the while, but I never had the courage to do so, so… erm… Promise you won't get mad or anything, will ya…?"

There it was again. _Promise_.

"I promise I won't," he assured, adding, "… idiot." He watched Sasuke pout in protest with much amusement, before the latter looked away, avoiding his gaze.

"… I like you."

Upon hearing this, Saizo was thrown into a state of mixed confused feelings almost immediately. _Did I… hear him correctly…?_

_What should I be feeling? Happy? Sad? Angry…?_

"I like you, Saizo," Sasuke repeated, louder and firmer this time. He stared directly into the forest green eyes of the Iga ninja, his eyes seemingly to be burning with affirmation. "Not just as a friend, but something _more_." As he said this, his cheeks became a dark hue of crimson. I've always thought of you as more than a friend, and even when you call me an idiot most of the time, I don't really mind. Because _this_ is the Saizo I've gotten to know in my life." He gave a warm smile towards a shocked Saizo Kirigakure as he directed his gaze towards the setting sun, his smile fading away. "I didn't want to tell you in the past, because I was afraid that we wouldn't be friends like this anymore… and it's pretty… embarrassing…"

He scratched the nape of his neck with a small sheepish smile. "I just wanted to tell you how I really felt about you when the time is right…" He then covered his face with his palm, as if he was hiding something. A sniffle erupted from him. "Goodness, what am I saying… I'm really one hell of an idiot…"

All of a sudden, Sasuke felt muscular arms circle his frame, bringing him into a tight embrace. He felt his hand being forced away, and was greeted by Saizo's face, close up. There was something different about him, though. His normally stoic emerald irises were now bursting with emotion, and his usual lips which were either pursed together or forced into a snarl, were now quivering, as if he was desperately wanting _something_.

A tear dripped from his eye. "S – Saizo…?"

"… You're really an idiot, you know?" Saizo murmured, avoiding the blonde's gaze.

"W – wha?"

"… Why do you always pull at my heartstrings everytime?" He hid his face in the crook of the monkey ninja's neck, hiding his agitated facial expression. He gritted his teeth. "Dammit… Of all people, why do I have to fall in love with you!?"

"Wait, you _love_ me?" Sasuke stared at him through his tears in shock and disbelief.

"Do you have any idea… how long I've been trying to control myself?" The demon-masked ninja tightened his grip on Sasuke. "I keep telling myself not to fall for you, because you are seriously such an idiot!" Words tumbled out from his mouth uncontrollably as he pulled back and looked at the Koga ninja in the eye. His jade eyes were now brimming with tears of agitation and disbelief.

"… Saizo…" the blonde ninja breathed with a wobbly croaky voice.

"For days, I've been trying so hard to push these feelings away and give you the cold shoulder. But I couldn't help it. Somehow, I wanted to know more about you. I _hated_ the fact that we were actually born to be rivals in this life. I don't even know when I've started liking you this way despite the differences between us, or whatnot," he spluttered. His cheeks glowed pink as he sniffled rather loudly, trying not to let his emotions get the better of him. He then continued in a much calmer voice, "You were always so lively and positive during patrolling and missions, and it was so damn hard to not fall in love with you, you damn idiot…"

Sasuke blinked. He could not imagine how much Saizo had actually tried to control himself. He leant in and lightly punched the demon-masked ninja's well-toned chest. "Then, why…? Why are you telling this to me, a downright idiot who has fallen for _you_? You… you could have simply rejected me and we… we could be rivals… Just like the way we were born, and then meant to be…" His voice trailed off into silence. He knew that it sounded really harsh, but he wanted to know Saizo's answer.

How he would react to his everyday idiocy in such a delicate matter like love.

"You idiot _Sasuke_, don't you get it?" Sasuke widened his eyes in shock as Saizo said this in exasperation.

_It was the first time in a long while... that he had been addressed by his name..._

He had expected Saizo to frown at him and shake his head, while saying, "Never mind, you're such an idiot" and all. However, instead, Saizo gave him a thin smile that was radiating brightly with warmth.

"Because I lik – no, _I love you_, you bumbling idiot Sasuke."

Sasuke brought a hand to his mouth as a gasp failed to escape from his vocal cords. Tears were flowing freely down his cheeks as emotions began to overwhelm his senses.

_Saizo had just said I love you._

Unaware of the blonde ninja's tears, the chestnut-haired ninja faced the setting sun, and softly said, "You know, sometimes I really wonder if it was actually possible for us to be together in a relationship. It isn't right, but it isn't wrong either." His green eyes gave out a small twinkle as he turned to Sasuke. "What do you think, Sasuke…?" His voice then hushed down to a whisper of concern as he finally noticed the now sobbing ninja. "… Are you okay, Sasuke?" he asked as his hand began rubbing the monkey ninja's back, in an attempt to comfort him.

"… Stupid Saizo…" the blonde sniffled. "Dammit, of course I want to be with you! Haven't you been listening to my confession earlier!?" Crystalline tears streamed down his cheeks profusely. "Dammit, you really are stupid, Saizo…" Through Sasuke's tears, Saizo could see a bright smile of happiness on his lips.

He smiled. _This idiot, he really is adorable…_

"Idiot, don't cry," the jade-eyed ninja muttered with a small smile as he lifted Sasuke's chin with a gloved hand. He then leant in closer and gently pressed his lips against the blonde's pinkish ones. Sure, he had kissed other women several times during his missions in the past, but they were just for the sake of getting new leads to complete the mission.

They never meant anything. But not this one.

_I love you, Sasuke._

A bright amber beam from the sunset bathed the couple in shimmering gold.

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**End**

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**End note: I'm really proud of this oneshot, somehow... uwu *triumph WOOHOO***

**I chose the name 'Setting of the Sun' because while the sun is still up, it represents how Sasuke and Saizo becomes truthful about each other's feelings and their relationship. :D Hope it didn't go out of logic or something... D: LOLOL**

**Any OTP oneshots? I'll be glad to write them! :3**

**It'll be great if you could drop in a review to tell me how you felt about this story! :D**

**Thank you for reading, and see you again soon in the next AGG fanfic! ;3**


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